Jake1989

Ahhhh! Well... that's life. It happens. We do our best to plan for everything but it's just not humanly possible. I think the most important thing is to just jump right back up on it and avoid a defeatist attitude. Keep going!!

Day 6 21 Sep. 2013 It took a lot of effort to get to the gym this morning, despite me being able to go in later since it's the weekend. And once I got there, I got my butt handed to me... it was a rough one. If anyone out there does GSX type workouts, you know how rough it can be. I ate well until the Utah-BYU game started when there were beers and burgers. Dang it. I knew the weekends were going to be rough. Day 7 22 Sep. 2013 So Sunday is pretty much the day off from everything. A day where I can eat what I want, skip the gym and just do whatever I please. All I'm supposed to do is get in a run... which I didn't. I ended up going to a festival two hours north for the day and by the time I got home I still had work to do to prep for work on Monday and it just didn't happen. I should have planned better. I also have gone over-budget for the month of September. Not by much, but I still have gone over. If I can offset that amount through the end of October, I'll still get the full points. (However, since Halloween is definitely my favorite holiday, this won't be easy... there are a lot of events I love to go to.) Day 8 23 Sep. 2013 Hit the gym this morning despite some chest soreness and it ended up not being too bad. Maybe I'll tack on a 5K tonight to mark one of the three I need per week. I think I'm pretty close to breaking my front squat PR, too, which is pretty exciting. Legs are easily my strong suit. (I don't know why most people loathe them!) Now that I'm back at work, the food situation is under control. The work-week makes it pretty easy to eat within my goals. Thanks JessFit and Crimsonnicole for the continued support! JessFit, I have a running background, so four miles isn't too bad. We all have our strengths. rjam, there's an option when you reply to add a "progress bar." You can find a color by doing a search for HTML color cods. Gym: 6/30 20.00%20.00% Quest Mission 1.01 Run: 2/18 11.11%11.11% ​Quest Mission 1.01 Food: 6/36 16.67%16.67% ​Quest Mission 1.02 Continuous Push-up PR: 25/60 41.67%41.67% Quest Mission 1.03

Day 5 20 Sep. 2013 Today's workout incorporated a 4-mile run, so I killed two birds with one stone. That said, my chest is super sore and my body aches. Not necessarily in a bad way, but in a way where it's definitely asking for recovery right now. If I feel worse tomorrow, I may have to miss the 5th gym session of the week. Gym: 4/30 13.33%13.33% Quest Mission 1.01 Run: 2/18 11.11%11.11% ​Quest Mission 1.01 Food: 5/36 13.89%13.89% ​Quest Mission 1.02 Continuous Push-up PR: 25/60 41.67%41.67% Quest Mission 1.03

Day 4 19 Sep. 2013 Oh man was I close to skipping the gym this morning. I was up much to late watching the finale of Big Brother and the Survivor premiere (anyone, anyone?) But, I managed to get up, mostly because I know that those bars below won't fill themselves. The food situation, again, was totally cool today, but the weekend will be tough. With football comes junk. My knee was bothering me a bit from the workout this morning (probably because of the impact from box jumps.) But I ran a 5K in 25:49, which isn't terrible considering I haven't ran in over a month. Mark one down! Gym: 3/30 10.00%10.00% Quest Mission 1.01 Run: 1/18 5.56%5.56% ​Quest Mission 1.01 Food: 4/36 11.11%11.11% ​Quest Mission 1.02 Continuous Push-up PR: 25/60 41.67%41.67% ​Quest Mission 1.03

Great goals! I find that there's NO WAY i can do anything once I get home. I work long hours, and often not home until 9:00pm. I've figured out that it's easier for me to eat while I'm at work or out rather than cook when I get home... as soon as I see that couch or bed, I'm down for the count. I simply cooks loads and loads of food on Sunday that lasts me for most of the week and bring it with me throughout the day. Maybe that will work for you?

Day 3 18 Sep. 2013 Hit the gym this morning for an abnormal Wednesday workout, and totally got my butt handed to me. I've actually felt a bit stagnant lately. I still feel sore, but I don't feel like I'm moving as quickly, efficiently, or pushing as much weight around. (I'm not lifting heavy weights on a regular basis, but it is a part of crossfit.) I won't be running tonight, as I have a networking thing I need to attend. I should have ran yesterday, so now I'm going to have to squeeze three runs into 4 days. Food was a success today. I still have dinner but it's ready to go since I made it at home. I did my base for my push-ups today and came up with a measly 25 without rest. To be fair, I am a bit sore from working out already. (So maybe my actual, fully-rested measurement should be off of 30. For now, I'll stick with 25). So, I'm almost half-way to where I want to be in five and a half weeks. I'm wondering if I should be measuring my success off of the 35 I need to add, rather than the 60 I want to do total. Because as of now, my goal looks like I'm already 42% of the way there. Anyone have thoughts on this? Thank you, JessFit and alfredop13 for the words of encouragement! Gym: 2/30 6.67%6.67% Quest Mission 1.01 Run: 0/18 0%0% ​Quest Mission 1.01 Food: 3/36 8.33%8.33% ​Quest Mission 1.02 Continuous Push-up PR: 25/60 41.67%41.67% ​Quest Mission 1.03

Day 1 16 Sep. 2013 Hit the gym today, but my legs were still massively sore from last Friday's workout (which was 7 sets of 20 front squats followed by a 400m run). I had taken the weekend off to recover since I haven't been that sore in a while. No cheating on the food issue here either. Day 2 17 Sep. 2013 Missed the gym today, which isn't normal for me at all. Typically I take Wednesdays off, not Tuesdays. I was way too tired to get out of bed. I thought about making one of my goals sleep-oriented, but that seemed a bit too advanced. Again, I stuck to the proper food. I still haven't figured out my base for my push-up goal, so that will (hopefully) be on Day 3. Gym: 1/30 3.33%3.33% Quest Mission 1.01 Run: 0/18 0%0% Quest Mission 1.01 Food: 2/36 5.56%5.56% Quest Mission 1.02 Continuous Push-up PR: 0/60 0%0% Quest Mission 1.03

I'm a day late and a septim short, but here goes. QUEST - ONLY THE FEARLESS WILL PREVAIL My main quest, which will take more than just this first challenge, it an overall, general, abstract idea on who I want to be. From a fitness perspective, I'll be faster, stronger, dexterous, and more flexible than I've ever been in my life. (Perhaps more than I was in college alpine racing for a D1 school.) I'll be happy and content with my job, looking forward to challenges that come with it. My friends will be just as fulfilling as any relationship I've been in (or the one I'm currently in). I don't have a way to measure when I'm there, but I do feel as if I'll be able to recognize it once I've arrived. LEVEL 1 - INTO THE FRAY Quest Mission 1.01 - Persistence, Perseverance, Passion Objective: Complete 5 gym sessions per week and 3 three-mile runs per week I understand that this seems quite ambitious for a first-time objective, but I currently go to the gym 4-5 times a week as, is. The key here to really for me to run while also maintaining the gym regularity. I'm an avid runner, and do adventure/obstacle racing all the time. But with no race scheduled in the near future (mostly because the ones I love to do cost an arm and a leg), I want to be sure that I stay on top of running. Reward: +3 STR, +2 DEX, +2 STA Quest Mission 1.02 - Fueling an Assassin Objective: Eat 2,175 good calories, 6 days a week (150g protein, 75g fat, 225g carbs) Getting in the right food is easy during the work week, mostly because eating out in Beverly Hills is expensive, and I always feel underfed. On the weekends I tend to go ape for anything I can shove in my face. If I can make either Saturday or Sunday a successful day, I'll take it. If anyone actually reads this and is interested in how I came up with the numbers, let me know. I'm happy to share. Reward: +3 CON Quest Mission 1.03 - Pushing the Basics Objective: Complete 60 push-ups in a row I've noticed that my weak areas tend to be in my chest and shoulders. Starting with the basics, I'll tackle push-ups on this one. I probably should have a base as to how many I can do in a row before setting this, but I honestly don't know off-hand. If I had to guess, I'd say between 25 and 30. I have no idea if 70 is really pushing the boundary on what's possible or not, so I'll chalk this goal up as the most difficult this first time around. I'll come up with a daily push-up routine outside of the gym to accomplish this one. Reward: +1 STR, +1 STA Side Quest 1 - Merchant's Beginning Objective: Stay under budget for September and October This is pretty self-explanatory. I know that the challenge only runs through 10/27, so I'll just extrapolate out my expenses for the last few days (or perhaps just run this particular objective out a bit longer). Reward: +3 WIS MOTIVATION I wish I had something super amazing to put here, but I think my motivation is a combination of a lot of things. I'll start with the greatest: myself. I've really gotten back into my own health (on a broad scale) the past two or three months, and I've already noticed a lot of great changes. I've completed a 1/2-marathon obstacle course race through the mountains, joined a new gym that I'm obsessed with, leaned out and even had some people notice, and have a new invigorated mentality toward health. Secondly, outside of myself, I'm constantly motivated by my competitiveness and my previous status as a collegiate athlete. Lastly, who doesn't like to look great on the beach? Living in a city like Los Angeles, there's plenty of people to be motivated by. While the town can sometimes have an unhealthy level of narcissism, at least it moves people to take care of themselves. Measurements: I'll measure everything on a straight percentage system. Pretty basic.

Thank you, Mad Hatter. You're the best!

Your goals are fantastic! Seriously, this is great (and unique). What is "PNF stretching?" I think I'm just going to have to come up with specific stretches for certain days of the week. Googling "flexibility training" hasn't gotten me very far. Thanks for all the help!

Hi, bigm141414! I've been to mobilitywod (unfortunately, a lot of the videos are only for subscribers.) The issue isn't that I don't know how to stretch, but that I'm looking for program to increase overall flexibility over time. Any ideas?

Hi everyone! Does anyone happen to have a good stretching/flexibility routine? Not a warm-up or cool-down stretch, but a scaleable routine for increased flexibility? This is something I'd really like to put down on my next challenge. Thank you, thank you!

Hi, Mighty_Mouse! I thought I'd throw in my two sense regarding obstacle course racing. I'm a natural runner, so it's always come pretty easy to me, but I HATE running. I find it incredibly boring, hard on the joints, and lonely even. That said, I found the solution to that to be obstacle course racing, specifically, the Spartan Race. I don't think it's at all impossible for you to complete a sprint course (5K) with 3-4 months of training, depending on where you're at right now. Good luck!

Welcome! Good luck on the Tough Mudder! I haven't done it, but I've done the Spartan Beast Course (13miles in the mountains w/ obstacles) and it was pretty amazing. Advice on that one is to be sure that you're running hills ahead of time. I'm not sure if it's translate to the Tough Mudder. Good luck!

Hello, everyone! So, I briefly signed up for all of this about 6 months ago. I started up a 6-week challenge, with the main aspect being attributed to a race that happened to fall in the last week of the challenge. Two weeks in, the race was pushed by a few months and I was incredibly frustrated. I was frustrated and dumped the whole thing. Now, I'm a huge fan of equalizers and curve-balls in any sort of challenge- it makes it interesting and unique. I should have altered my goals in the challenge and continued. Hindsight is 20/20, I suppose. Anyway, I finally did the race a couple weekends ago and performed quite well. (My original goal was top 1%. I ended up placing 99th of 5,281. I missed it, but I was still pretty happy with my results.) So I'm back now, stronger even, equipped with all the training I did leading up to that race. A couple quick things: I'm born as a Scout.I've become more of an Assassin.I'd like to be an Assassin-Ranger hybrid.Running and swimming come natural to me, it's my strongest area. I'm pretty agile, probably because I stack in at only 5'7". The past 4 months of Crossfit with about 20miles per week on the track have put me more into an Assassin category, which is great. I'm sure I'll have tons of questions for everyone that has more experience than me and I'll do my best to help others out in anything they need. I was a collegiate athlete for the first two years of college (alpine skiing) so I have some knowledge when it comes to cross-training. I look forward to collaborating with everyone!

Log - Day 6 & 7 (Week 1) Goal 1: "Beginning Strength" - 3 bodyweight workouts/week I did my workout on Day 7, as stipulated, and it was relatively easy since it was legs. So far, I'm on track with this one. 3 bodyweight workouts; goal = 18 Goal 2: "Perseverance, Repeated" - compete in the Malibu Spartan Race I didn't run on Day 6 (Saturday) like I had planned, but I made it up on Sunday. Just 12 days to this race! Goal 3: "The Right Ingredients" - follow my palao-esque diet throughly No bueno on this one. Day 6 was my designated cheat day for the week that I gave myself, and I took it to heart... hahahaha. But I continued that into Day 7. I find it easier to work with this eating habit when I'm at work, when I'm at home though, I get lazy and eat whatever, often going out to grab food. Damn those pizzas and burgers! 5 good days; goal = 36 Goal 4: "Rise to the Top" - average 2 networking drinks and 9 scripts per week, plus an efficient time log at work with no more than 30 minutes downtime I don't do drinks on the weekend, so this portion is null and void, as is the efficient working days. I should have read 4 scripts this weekend, but I ended up only reading two, consuming the rest of my time finishing Game of Thrones. I really want to say it was worth it, but I should have read what I was supposed to be reading. I'm already 3 scripts behind on this goal... I had better catch up with the holiday break. 6 scripts; goal = 54 3 networking drinks; goal = 12 4 days efficiency; goal = 30 My run was good, but not great, I have a lot of work to do. The workouts are going okay, I think I'm mostly hoping that they do the trick. Not only do I want to get stronger, but it'd be fantastic to get the "look" that I want. For whatever reason, my athletic ability has never correlated with the way I look. I'm much more capable than what I look, I simply want to match it. 5 weeks to go!

Log - Day 5 (Week 1) Goal 1: "Beginning Strength" - 3 bodyweight workouts/week I just finished the second bodyweight workout of the week, which consisted of elevated pushups, bird dogs, squats, and supermans. It was successful (I found a pretty sick workout track... Click if you're interested and jump to about 1:30 into the 20 minute video. (And I've definitely put this event, Tomorrowland, on my own Epic Quest.)2 bodyweight workouts; goal = 18 Goal 2: "Perseverance, Repeated" - compete in the Malibu Spartan Race Still working toward this. I have a run scheduled tomorrow to help. I'm aiming for another 5K day. Goal 3: "The Right Ingredients" - follow my palao-esque diet throughly I'm getting good at this! This week has been great so far. I'm going to probably use tomorrow (Saturday) as my "day off" from this, and then get back on the horse on Sunday. I even almost completely gave up coffee, even though I told myself one cup a day is okay... I ended up having one cup all week; trading the rest for black tea. 5 good days; goal = 36 Goal 4: "Rise to the Top" - average 2 networking drinks and 9 scripts per week, plus an efficient time log at work with no more than 30 minutes downtime No more script reading today, but I was super busy during work. Nonetheless, I should probably read one tonight. I'll just try and go overboard this weekend- I also have the holiday around the corner to catch up. No drinks tonight, I actually turned both of the offers down because I was just too exhausted. Besides, I already did 4 this week. Today was also efficient at work; I got a ton ton and had zero Facebook distractions. 4 scripts; goal = 54 3 networking drinks; goal = 12 4 days efficiency; goal = 30 This was a good week. Some things didn't go as scheduled, but I think I managed to keep a good mental state (staying motivated.) Now I just need to conquer the weekend. Bah.

Log - Day 4 (Week 1) I'm again writing the following morning because I didn't get home until very, very late. Goal 1: "Beginning Strength" - 3 bodyweight workouts/week I had a second workout planned for tonight, but I didn't get to it because I didn't get home from work/drinks until 11:45pm, and I didn't have any energy left. :-/ I need to start working out in the mornings so this doesn't happen. I have one skip day in the week (3 workouts, 3 runs) and I was planning on making it Sundays, but I suppose I can use that day for times like this when extenuating circumstances keep me from the normal schedule.. 1 workout, goal = 18 Goal 2: "Perseverance, Repeated" - compete in the Malibu Spartan Race Well, I obviously didn't do any running today if I didn't even get the workout in, but I have two runs left to do by Sunday night. Goal 3: "The Right Ingredients" - follow my palao-esque diet throughly Today was great, no mishaps. Part of the reason I say palao-esque is because I still drink, and unfortunately I drink quite a bit, but mostly because of work, it comes with the job. And today I had double drinks. 4 good days, goal = 36 Goal 4: "Rise to the Top" - average 2 networking drinks and 9 scripts per week, plus an efficient time log at work with no more than 30 minutes downtime I read two more scripts, which is good since I'm already behind. This brings me to 3, total. I had double-drinks today, back-to-back, and so it cut into my workout. Both outings were pretty important though and I couldn't really have passed them up. Tack on two! It was also an efficient day, unlike yesterday's gloriously unproductive day. 4 scripts, goal = 54 1 networking drinks, goal = 12 3 days efficiency, goal = 30 Overall, today was a bit bitter sweet. I rocked it in the workplace, but suffered in the workout. I knew going into this that staying on top of the workouts would be the most difficult. That said, it's still not a lost week because I also have one skip day. I had planned for Sunday but now I've made it today. Hahaha. I just have to be sure to actually do it and not stay off the horse. Gah, I'm so unmotivated sometimes.

Log - Day 3 (Week 1) I'm writing this the following morning because I was just too exhausted to tackle it last night. Goal 1: "Beginning Strength" - 3 bodyweight workouts/week It was an off day today, so nothing to do. 1 workout, goal = 18 Goal 2: "Perseverance, Repeated" - compete in the Malibu Spartan Race I ran 5K today (I'm doing running between workout days) and it went decently, but I had better be in better shape by the time I the race gets here. Goal 3: "The Right Ingredients" - follow my palao-esque diet throughly Boy was I tempted today! There was a lot of great food around the office for various reasons, including a plethora of cheese... it took everything in me to not eat it. But, so far so good. 3 good days, goal = 36 Goal 4: "Rise to the Top" - average 2 networking drinks and 9 scripts per week, plus an efficient time log at work with no more than 30 minutes downtime No drinks today, but I will on Day 4. I only finished the one script today, bringing me to 2. But I should have read more, considering how much down time I had today, and because of that, I'm not going to call today an efficient one, knocking off my first point there. Tomorrow I should be more focused; there was a lot of "extra-curriculars" going on in the office today. 2 scripts, goal = 54 1 networking drinks, goal = 12 2 days efficiency, goal = 30 Today could have went better with Goal #4, but I'm glad I got my run in, which will eventually translate into success in goal #2. The eating is going okay, but it helps that I'm already pretty good at it. It's really about just making it consistent and not falling off the horse. I could have been more focused at work, but in my defense (excuse), everyone was doing their own thing! Haha.

Log - Day 2 (Week 1) Goal 1: "Beginning Strength" - 3 bodyweight workouts/week I did the first workout of the week tonight, but I definitely struggled with the motivation. I had planned to come home from work and do it, but I ended up attending a panel discussion, so I didn't get home until 10:30. I have this tendency to not be flexible with fitness goals, so I was VERY close to scratching the workout. I delayed it another 45 minutes, but I did just finish. Hopefully I'll be a bit sore tomorrow so I'll feel as if it was worth it. My plan does make the workouts harder as each week goes by, so this is just the beginning. This is going to be an uphill battle. *forced laughter* Goal 2: "Perseverance, Repeated" - compete in the Malibu Spartan Race Today was workout number one to continue to prep for this. Tomorrow I'll do a three mile run. Goal 3: "The Right Ingredients" - follow my palao-esque diet throughly Complete success again (2 for 2) on this so far. The actual temptation isn't so bad, it's just the prep in the mornings to get ready for it. It only takes about 20 minutes, but I enjoy sleeping since I get so little of it. Goal 4: "Rise to the Top" - average 2 networking drinks and 9 scripts per week, plus an efficient time log at work with no more than 30 minutes downtime -I didn't have drinks tonight, but I went to a panel where I briefly and informally met a couple people, as well as made an appearance to other industry friends. I'll count it as a half drink. That, plus yesterday's half-drinks brings me to 1. I read 1.5 scripts today, but none yesterday. (I had worked on a book pitch instead). So far, so good. I want to say I'll finish it when I'm done on here and before I go to bed, but that would probably be a lie- my bed is too damn comfortable. I'm not going to count the half script until it's done though. As far as efficiency goes, today was great, even better than yesterday. Maybe it won't be as hard of a habit to form as I thought. I literally had almost no down time and got a ton done. 1 script, goal = 54 1 networking drink, goal = 12 2 days efficiency, goal = 30 ​ Overall, the workout was definitely harder to start that I thought, but mostly because I had an interrupted schedule. Anyone have any tips on how to mentally overcome any issues of flexibility? I can have issues deviating from my plan when it comes to fitness. Thanks for the support!

Let me know how the bouldering goes! I'm a climber myself.

Log - Day 1 (Week 1) Goal 1: "Beginning Strength" - 3 bodyweight workouts/week I didn't workout today, but since I'm sore from Sunday (rock climbing) this isn't so bad. Tomorrow will be the first workout. Goal 2: "Perseverance, Repeated" - compete in the Malibu Spartan Race This is just under three weeks away. I didn't run today, because I had impromtu drinks in the evening that I didn't plan during the day. Tomorrow I should have a workout, followed by a run on Wednesday. I need to get in the habit of doing runs/workouts in the morning so late-night unplanned events don't screw up the schedule. Goal 3: "The Right Ingredients" - follow my palao-esque diet throughly I was successful today in this aspect. Nothing out of the plan. I finally incorporated sweet potato into my diet, which took some effort considering that I don't love them. Goal 4: "Rise to the Top" - average 2 networking drinks and 9 scripts per week, plus an efficient time log at work with no more than 30 minutes downtime -I had impromtu drinks tonight, but I will only consider it half drinks because of lack of benefit it's going to give me. But I have 7 more drinks planned over the next 3 weeks, even with Thanksgiving, so I'm doing pretty well in this regard. I didn't read a single script today but mostly because I was working on a book to script adaptation... so I was stuck reading a novel all day. Nonetheless, I'm not going to count it because that's not going to get me to where I want to be even though it benefits me in my current job. I was on track today and stayed focus, although I was very close. I need to be careful in the future. Thank you to everyone for the support! I can't even begin to tell you how much your feedback keeps me motivated. Hopefully tomorrow I'll really get on the bodyweight workouts, the real meat in this challenge.

No, I meant one day a week where I can eat whatever (usually this is Sunday for me). The other days, I'll dock myself 1% for each meal screw-up. Then, in the end, I'll grade myself (full reward points for anything in the "A" zone... 93% and up.) Does that still seem unrealistic? I'm already a VERY healthy eater so this is to really just bring myself to the next accountability eater... I'm the guy at work that everyone thinks eats weirdly. I'm more concerned about the workout goals, to be honest. Let me know your thoughts, I really appreciate it! As a side note, I find that I'm much less tempted to eat junk if I'm not starving. I think it's important to fuel yourself so you don't get to this point where you're tempted. Thanks, everyone! I really, really appreciate it!

This will be my first challenge on NF. I'm not new to fitness but I've been out of it so long that I may as well be starting fresh. I've been thinking about what would suit me best, as this is what I've come up with, goal-wise. Goal 1 - "Beginning Strength" Complete designated bodyweight workout 3x/week. Track performance on a spreadsheet Grade will be determined by the number of workouts I attend. Reward: +2 STR, +2 STA I have a pretty reliable bodyweight program that I've found works for me. It's efficient, just 15-20 minutes a day, so I can't use work as an excuse. Goal 2 - "Perseverance, Repeated" Compete in the 2013 Malibu Spartan Race (Dec. 1st) Place in the top 10% of the competitor category Grade will be determined by placement; 10%=A , 15%=8, 20%=C, etc... Reward: +2 DEX, +2 STA I competed in this last year and did fairly well, placing 45th out of 458 competitive runners and 11th out of 58 in my age group. I'd like to again place in the top 10%. Goal 3 - "The Right Ingredients" Eat according to my paleo-esque eating regimen (and just one cup of coffee a day) I am allowed one cheat day, where I can eat whatever I like Every time I eat something outside of my cheat day that I shouldn't, I'm docked 1%. Reward: +3 CON ​I'm generally pretty good about eating, but when I fall off the wagon, I tend to stay off for a while. I'm sort of an extreme person, so, mentally, when I ruin a day, I just say "well screw this week then" and keep going. I need to change that. Goal 4 - "Rise to the Top" Become more dutiful at work, becoming more efficient. I must complete the following: A minimum of 2 networking "drinks" per week Read at least 9 scripts per week Create a log of time-spent at work to decrease time spent slacking. If I've spent more than 30 minutes, the day has been a bust. [*]Successfulness will be accessed based on the percentage of total drinks made, total scripts read, and number of days worked efficiently, 33% being applied to each of the above bullets. [*]Reward: +1.5 CHA, +2.5 WIS ​I work in a very tough industry (entertainment-television) that's very time-consuming and political. In about a year, I'll be making my next jump, so I should be getting as much of the above in my schedule as possible. If anyone has any suggestions on how to improve any of these, please let me know... this is my first go-ahead!

Thanks, BambiKhan. I wish I had 20 minutes to walk in the morning, but with 20 minutes, I'd rather run a couple miles. The problem is the motivation. I should probably just trick myself... if I don't feel like running, I'll just walk, and 50% of the time when I have my shoes on and I'm out the door, I'll probably want to run a couple miles anyway. Running/walking isn't an issue for me; generally, I love to do it (in short distances or sprint workouts). What I really need the motivation on is body weight workouts.